74 passenger of Karvan-e-Aman bus cross sides in Kashmir

Published: Thursday, March 27, 2008, 22:32 [IST]

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Srinagar, Mar 27 (UNI) As many as 74 passengers of Karvan-e-Aman bus crossed sides at Kaman, the last Indian military post on the Line of Control (LoC) in Uri sector in north Kashmir today, official sources said.

They said 25 passengers from here boarded the buses at an undisclosed place this morning for Kaman post amid tight security.

Of these 10 passengers were returning to their homes in PoK after meeting their relatives here for the first time since 1947 partition.

They said 15 people were travelling to PoK for the first time to meet their relatives across the border since their separation 60 years ago.

The passengers deboarded the buses on this side of the border and crossed the Kaman post bridge on foot to reach the other side. They were later taken to Muzaffarabad, the capital of PoK in buses.

Similarly, sources said, 49 passengers also arrived here after crossing the bridge on foot from other side of the LoC.

The returnee passengers, included 27 citizens of this side who had crossed over to the other side for meeting their relatives there.

They said 22 PoK citizens also arrived this time to meet their relatives here.

The trans- border bus service, suspended in 1947, was resumed on April 7, 2005 after the first bus was flagged off by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, along with UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and then Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed.

The bus service has been sucessfully running despite threats by a number of militant outfits. However, it was suspended for about a month when the Kaman post bridge and the road on the other side was damaged in the devastating earthquake on October 8, 2005, which claimed one lakh lives on either side of the border.